Nanny Undercover

Chapter 7: Realizing Things

They said good night upstairs in the hall, accompanying their words with another kiss. This time it was soft, nothing demanding or seeking, but merely a romantic gesture of comfort. They put their arms around each other and reached for each other's mouths with their own, smiling with anticipation.

Jeff went to bed with his head full of Goldie, the images and textures of her, the way her eyes tilted at the corners, the thickness of her beautiful hair, the way her body had felt as she lay under him on the couch. Kissing her had been like tasting the ripest, most delicious fruit, like when he'd find wild raspberries in the hedgerows near his grandparents' house in the country. And her body was voluptuous and round, lush and curvy. Just thinking about her was making him excited in a way he hadn't been in years.

She was in her early twenties; he was in his mid-thirties. That wasn't terrible, was it? In this day and age a ten to twelve year age gap was nothing.

Jeff was more concerned about Maggie.

Goldie was nothing like Maggie. Maggie was dark, lean, athletic, tall, physically the opposite of Goldie in nearly every way. Maggie had had a fiery temper and was as highly strung as a whippet, while Goldie was mellow and easy going, endlessly patient and relaxed. So how could he be attracted to Goldie, when she was so different from the woman he was so deeply in love with?

And more to the point, how could he be attracted to Goldie, period?

What did it mean that he could be thinking about someone else mere months after the person he thought he was going to spend his life with had died? Just because he and Mags weren't married didn't mean that they hadn't considered their relationship permanent. They'd committed themselves to each other, they'd had children together.

So how?

Musing on these deep thoughts, he fell into a fitful sleep.

Over in her room, Goldie, too, was thinking of Jeff, and what had just happened. Normally she was pretty good at reading guys, at knowing if they were interested in her. Of course, she'd always thought Jeff was monstrously attractive, even before they'd met. Jeffrey Ormonde was a legitimate rock star and sex symbol while she was still in junior high school, and had made the transition to mainstream superstardom over the last five years with a few carefully chosen movie roles and more serious music. But she'd come into his household to do a job, and he was still mourning the death of his de facto wife, besides.

She'd just assumed he wouldn't be interested in anything like that.

And then, tonight, out of nowhere, 'I want to kiss you.'

Just hearing the words again in her head made Goldie shiver with pleasure.

Did she want to pursue this? Wouldn't it complicate her job?

Her job.

Goldie didn't like thinking about her job. The truth was that she was starting to feel very bad indeed about duping this very nice man, being in his home under false pretenses and lying to him. When she accepted the job, she'd assumed Jeff would be a horrible father, neglectful and easy to dislike.

Goldie rolled over in bed, flicking her braid over her shoulder. Dammit, why couldn't he have been that man? Then everything would be so easy. They could make their case, the girls could go live with their nice grandparents, she could collect her paycheck and be on her way.

But now.

Jeff turned out to be so nice, such a dedicated father, so devoted.

And such a good kisser.

And Goldie, too, finally managed to fall asleep, though she tossed and turned for most of the night.

She woke to the sounds of baby talk coming from the nursery, and hurried down the hall.